Decorating with Botanicals: Anna Weatherley Handpainted Dinnerware

Flowers, butterflies and insects can all have a place in the home. Maybe not necessarily real ones, but the ones that have been recreated in such detail they’re practically dancing before your eyes. Anna Weatherley’s dinnerware is the perfect way to add a touch of botanicals to your home. Once you are finished dining, you can do what many designers do and hang them on the wall.

Every piece of Anna Weatherley dinnerware is hand painted in Hungary by a group of master artisans, each of whom specialize in a particular design. The flowers and fruits are painted mostly by men, while women tend to be the experts in painting the charming bugs and butterflies with miniature detailed wings and legs and gold-dipped eyes. The grasshopper is a favorite and each one is given a different personality. To finish, softly brushed golden borders on the porcelain are painted by a single painter with special mastery in this special application technique.

Anna Weatherley Handpainted Dinnerware

Ms. Weatherley was inspired by the work of botanical illustrators of the 18th Century. You can clearly see the same attention to detail and appreciation for natural beauty in all of her pieces. Eighteenth-century European illustrators such as Pierre Joseph Redoute, William Hooker, and Georg Dionysius Ehret are considered the masters of botanicals. For instance, pictured below are two pieces by Redoute. It’s easy to see the inspiration that Ms. Weatherley has drawn from these historical pieces. Each work of art is simple, beautiful and in vivid detail. While Anna Weatherley’s designs are refreshingly rooted in history, they are equally at home in contemporary or traditional settings. Prints of these botanicals have long been a staple in many decorators’ repertoires. Framed and hung in groupings on a wall, they offer maximum style to a home.

"Redoute's Roses" by Pierre J Redoute (image courtesy Autumn Glass)

"Redoute's Roses" by Pierre J Redoute (image courtesy Autumn Glass)

The same can be said for dinnerware by Anna Weatherley, which has just as much impact on a wall as it does on the table. I love the idea of a table filled with her plates and saucers, alongside tiny finger sandwiches and a few pots of delicious tea. Guests will certainly smile when they discover a butterfly, ready to spread its wings, or a tulip that’s as wonderful as the real thing. If you are like me, and are just starting to add botanicals to your home, you might simply tuck one of Ms. Weatherley’s plates next to your bed on your nightstand, or in the entryway to catch your keys and daily trappings. What a beautiful way to add a bit of whimsy to your home!

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